Apparatus for transporting a quantity of lost circulation material and methods of making and using same

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for transporting quantities of lost circulation material. The system includes at least one pump, at least one intake assembly, at least one exhaust assembly, and can also include at least one intake member operably connected to the intake assembly, and at least one exhaust member operably connected to the exhaust assembly.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. Section 119 toU.S. provisional patent application No. 60/504,096 filed on Sep. 19,2003, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by referencein their entirety.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to a system and methods forefficiently and safely transporting a quantity of lost circulationmaterial to a predetermined location by employing a novel conveyingsystem.

2. Background of the Related Art

In the field of drilling, drill rigs are typically of the rotary rigtype. Rotary drill rig usually includes multiple engines that supplypower hoisting equipment that raise and lower a drill string, and rotaryequipment that turn the drill string and a drill bit attached to the endof the drilling string. These engines also power the circulationequipment that pumps drilling fluids down hole to lubricate the drillstring and drill bit.

The drilling crew is under the supervision of a driller who operates thedrilling and hoisting equipment. The person who works on a platform,high in the derrick, is called a derrickman. The Derrickman's job is tohandle the upper part of the drill stem as it is raised and loweredout/into the hole. The workers who work on the drill floor are calledrig workers or roughnecks. Their job is to perform general labor and addnew pipe joints as the well is drilled. All of these personnel and theentire operation of the drill rig is under the supervision of a personcalled a tool pusher. A typical drill rig will operate 24 hours per day,7 days per week.

In the field of hydrocarbon exploration and more specifically, duringthe drilling of wells to recover oil and gas it is necessary tocirculate the drilling fluid down the hollow drilling pipe to the bottomof the well bore and back up the well bore to the surface. This drillingfluid keeps the geologic formations (dirt, rock, voids, air pockets,etc.) surrounding the well bore in place and enhances and/or maintainsthe ability to move the drill pipe up and down within the well bore.Drilling fluids of different weights and viscosities are requireddepending upon the depth of the well, the geologic formationsencountered and the diameter of the well bore. For example, in theOklahoma and Texas panhandle, the dolomite and other undergroundgeological formations are much more fractured than in other areas of theworld. Such fractures lead or require a drilling fluid (and onepreferably having a lost circulation material added thereto) capable ofbridging and/or sealing off the fractured zone such that the drillingfluid is not lost through such fractures.

Operation of rotary drilling equipment involves rotating a drill bit bymeans of a hollow pipe. The drilling fluid circulates down the hollowpipe, through the bit, and back to the surface through the annular spacebetween the outside of the drill pipe and the inside of the drilled holeor casing. The drilling fluid performs many functions in rotary drillingoperations including, but not limited to:

-   -   1) Remove formation cuttings from the drilled hole    -   2) Suspend cuttings during trips    -   3) Form an impermeable wallcake    -   4) Prevent caving of the formation    -   5) Control of formation pressure

Consequently during the drilling of an oil and gas well, it is necessaryto continuously monitor the drilling fluid and change the physicalcharacteristics and properties of the drilling fluid as new situationsare encountered. These physical characteristics include the addition oflost circulation material. The function of lost circulation material (or“LCM”) is to seal off porous or fractured formations encountered whiledrilling oil and gas wells. In this manner, the LCM serves the purposeof filling in or “packing” the voids to ensure that drilling fluid isnot lost or siphoned off through the voids and away from the well bore.

A typical drilling fluid system for an oil and gas well drilling rigincludes a holding tank, usually positioned at the well surface (on oradjacent to the drilling rig) and a network of pumps, mixers, and supplylines that run to and from the well bore. In some situations, theholding tank may be positioned substantially adjacent the well bore. Thelocation of the holding tank is thus widely variable and dependent uponhistorical preference and/or space limitations at the well site.

The holding tank is used to hold the various dry and liquid componentsof the drilling fluid as they are mixed into a slurry to produce adrilling fluid of the desired physical properties and characteristics.The drilling fluid is then pumped from the holding tank through thesupply lines and circulated through the well bore at the desired rate.

The physical characteristics and properties of the drilling fluid arealtered by the addition of liquids (such as water) powder and othertypes of lost circulation materials. Oftentimes, the drilling fluid issimply mud that has water or other materials added to it. These lostcirculation materials are typically packaged in burlap or paper bagsweighing up to one hundred pounds each. Bags of lost circulationmaterials are manually loaded in a storage area on the rig or at thewell site in an out-of-the-way location. When needed, the bags of lostcirculation materials are typically carried by the rig workers to theholding tank. The lost circulation materials are then manually dumped bythe rig workers into the holding tank. Manually carrying and dumping thebags is physically demanding and oftentimes dangerous and fatiguing tothe rig worker. Further, the method requires a significant amount ofmanpower to accomplish the task especially when it is necessary torapidly add bags of lost circulation material to the drilling fluid tochange its physical properties in response to an encountered geologicsituation. There are many types of LCM utilized in the oil and gasindustry. Examples of LCM's include: Cottonseed Hulls, Cedar Fiber,Paper, Cottonseed Burrs, Sawdust, Cellophane, Calcium Carbonate,Phenolic Plastic, and many others. These lost circulation materials varyin size and bridging characteristics (i.e. their ability to locktogether and not flow into and through the fracture). If a lostcirculation material has a high bridging characteristic, its particlesare typically of varying size and act similar or cause a cement likeeffect by filling up (i.e. bridging) the fracture thereby stopping anypotential loss of drilling fluid. It is seldom known what size geologicvoids or openings drilling fluid is being lost to. And, therefore, amixture of particle sizes is more effective. Local availability orpreference may also determine the lost circulation material used at anygiven location.

Because of the physical demands of lifting and carrying the bags of LCM,the rig workers are subject to physical injury and heat exhaustion. Inaddition, loading, carrying, and dumping of the bags may expose the rigworker to the dust and fumes generated by the dry powdered materialstypically contained in the bags and may create a hazardous environmentalrisk to the rig workers. For example, the inhalation of LCM may becarcinogenic often time. Further, an environmental waste disposalproblem is created by the used empty paper bags remaining after the lostcirculation material is dumped in the mud system.

In addition to the physical and environmental risks associated withstoring and handling lost circulation materials in bags, these types ofbags impose significant storage problems at the drilling site. Bagstorage typically requires a great deal of space, and storage space isespecially valuable in a drilling installation where drilling platformspace is finite and often quite limited. Consequently, sufficient bagstorage space on a drilling rig is often unavailable or inconvenientlylocated, especially in situations where it is necessary to have on hand,at the well site, a wide variety of different types of componentsavailable for use in the drilling mud system. Inconvenient storage spacemakes it especially difficult to manually move the bags from storage tothe mud system. Therefore, a need exists for systems and methods ofeasily, efficiently and safely transporting lost circulation materialsto the drilling fluid holding tank at a well site.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a system for transporting lostcirculation material.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the system of FIG. 1 further includingan intake member.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the system of FIG. 1 further includingan exhaust member.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the system of FIG. 1 including both theintake member of FIG. 2 and the exhaust member of FIG. 3.

FIG. 4 a is a perspective view of a mister operably connected to a pumpassembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, itis to be understood that the invention in not limited in its applicationto the details of construction and the arrangement of the components setforth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. Theinvention is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced orcarried out in various ways and as such all such embodiments and/orequivalents are to be considered as being encompassed within the scopeand description of the present invention. Also, it is to be understoodthat the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for purpose ofdescription and should not be regarded as limiting.

Referring now to FIG. 1 shown therein is a system 10 for transporting aquantity of lost circulation material 12 to a predetermined location 14.The lost circulation material 12 is shown in FIG. 1 as being stored in atruck 13. One of ordinary skill in the art would realize that the truck13 is only used for purpose of explanation and that any receptacle,tank, or other storage assembly could be used to hold the lostcirculation material 12. In a preferred embodiment, the predeterminedlocation 14 is a drilling fluid storage tank 15. The system 10 includesa pumping assembly 16, an intake assembly 18, and an exhaust assembly20. In operation, the intake assembly 18 is disposed in proximity to thequantity of lost circulation material 12 and the exhaust assembly 20 isdisposed in proximity to the predetermined location 14 (i.e. the exhaustassembly 20 is placed proximate to the location where the lostcirculation material is to be transported.) The pump assembly 16 is thenactivated such that the quantity of lost circulation material 12 isdrawn into the intake assembly 18, pumped through the pump assembly 16,and discharged out of the exhaust assembly 20 thereby efficiently,safely and quickly transporting the lost circulation material 12 to thepredetermined location 14.

Referring now to FIG. 2 the intake assembly may also include an intakemember 22 that has a first end 24, a second end 26 and a length 28extending between the first end 24 and the second end 26 of the intakemember 22. In this embodiment of the system 10, the first end 24 of theintake member 22 is disposed in proximity to the quantity of lostcirculation material 12 and the second end 26 of the intake member 22 isintegrally and operably connected to the pump assembly 16 such that thequantity of lost circulation material 12 is drawn into the first end 24of the intake member 22 through the length 28 of the intake member 22and out of the second end 26 of the intake member 22 passed through thepump assembly 16 and discharged out of the exhaust assembly 20 therebytransporting the quantity of lost circulation material 12 to thepredetermined location 14.

Referring now to FIG. 3 the exhaust assembly 20 may also include anexhaust member 30 having a first end 32, a second end 34, and a length36 extending between the first end 32 and the second end 34 of theexhaust member 30. In this embodiment of the system 10, the first end 32of the exhaust member 30 is integrally and operably connected to thepump assembly 16 and the second end 34 of the exhaust member 30 isdisposed proximate to the predetermined location 14 where the quantityof lost circulation material 12 is to be transported. In operation, thepump assembly 16 is activated such that the quantity of lost circulationmaterial 12 is drawn into the intake assembly 18 passed through the pumpassembly 16, discharged out of the pump assembly 16 into the first end32 of the exhaust member 30, passed through the length 36 of the exhaustmember 30 and discharged out the second end 34 of the exhaust member,thereby transporting the quantity of lost circulation material 12 to thepredetermined location 14.

Referring now to FIG. 4, the pump assembly 16 includes both the intakemember 22 having the first end 24, the second end 26 and the length 28and the exhaust member 30 having the first end 32, the second end 34,and the length 36. In this embodiment of the system 10, the first end 24of the intake member 22 is disposed in proximity to the quantity of lostcirculation material 12, the second end 26 of the intake member 22 isoperably connected to the pump assembly 16, the first end 32 of theexhaust member 30 is also operably connected to the pump assembly 16 andthe second end 34 of the exhaust member 30 is disposed in proximity tothe predetermined location 14. In operation, the pump assembly 16 isactivated such that the quantity of lost circulation material 12 isdrawn into the first end 24 of the intake member 22, through the length28 of the intake member 22, out of the second end 26 of the intakemember 22, into the pump assembly 16, passed through the pump assembly16 and out of the pump assembly 16, into the first end 32 of the exhaustmember 30, through the length 36 of the exhaust member 30 and out thesecond end 34 of the exhaust member 30 to the predetermined location 14thereby transporting the lost circulation material.

It should be noted that the intake member 22 and the exhaust member 30can be made from any tubing, duct, hose or pipe that is capable oftransporting the lost circulation material 12. Preferably, the tubing,duct, hose or pipe is flexible and collapsible for ease of handling andstorage. The intake member 22 and exhaust member 30 can be combinationsand derivations of tubing, duct, hose and pipe. A plurality of lengthsof tubing, duct, hose and pipe may also be joined together via fastenersor bonding material to form the intake member 22 or the exhaust member30.

The pump assembly 16 can be any type of pump, such as a centrifugal pumpor positive displacement pump, capable of drawing the quantity of lostcirculation material 12 through the intake member 22 into the intakeassembly 18 and propelling the quantity of lost circulation material 12out the exhaust assembly 20 and through the exhaust member 30 to thepredetermined location 14. The pump assembly 16 can be powered via aninternal combustion engine or an AC or DC electric motor or the pumpassembly 16 can be powered by solar or wind derived renewal energyresources. Alternatively, the pump assembly 16 could be powered by thecombustion of natural gas released by the process of running the welldrilling equipment. The pump assembly 16, the intake member 22, andexhaust member 30 are designed to be coordinated such that the pumpassembly 16 is sufficiently powered to transport the lost circulationmaterial 12 to the predetermined location 14 but not so over-powered asto damage the intake member 22 and the exhaust member in the process oftransporting the lost circulation material 12.

Typically, the lost circulation material 12 is a quantity of cotton seedhulls, however, the quantity of lost circulation material 12 can beeither fiber, paper, sawdust, cellophane, calcium carbonate, phenolicplastic or any other type of lost circulation material known in the art,or combinations and derivations of such materials. The predeterminedlocation 14 to which the quantity of lost circulation material 12 istransported is typically the drilling fluid holding tank 15 which, inactual operation, may actually be what is referred to as a mud pit ormixing hopper of a hydrocarbon drilling system.

Referring again to FIG. 4 the quantity of lost circulation material 12can be stored in a container 40 that is placed in proximity to the firstend 24 of the intake member 22. The container 40 can be, as an examplebut not by way of limitation, a drum or a metal or plastic barrel and/ora portable trailer or even a tractor trailer. Preferably, the container40 is a portable trailer or tractor trailer thereby reducing thetransportation and the environmental waste disposal problems associatedwith bags and barrels. The quantity of lost circulation material 12disposed in the container 40 can be assisted into the intake member 22via an operator using his hands or any tool convenient for shoveling ortransporting the quantity of lost circulation material 12 into the firstend 24 of the intake member 22. The system 10 for transporting lostcirculation material can also include a mister 44 operably connected toa fluid source. The mister 44 is located near the second end 34 of theexhaust member 30. The mister 44 is for aerosolizing a quantity of fluidwith air in order to reduce the ambient air bound particles (i.e. dust)of lost circulation material 12 as the particles of the lost circulationmaterial 12 exit the exhaust assembly 20 or exhaust member 30 and enterthe predetermined location 14—such as the drilling fluid storage tank 15(i.e. the mud pit or hopper of the hydrocarbon drilling system.)

An alternate embodiment of the mister 44 is shown in FIG. 4 a anddesignated generally as mister 44 a. The mister 44 a has a first end 50and a second end 55 and a length 60 extending between the first end 50and the second end 55 of the mister 44 a. The mister 44 a also has afluid port assembly 65 that is integral with the mister 44 a. The fluidport assembly 65 includes a hollow tube 66 that has an open first end 70and an open second end 76 and a length 80 extending between the openfirst end 70 and the open second end 76. The open second end 76 of thefluid port assembly 65 is disposed in proximity to or in contact with afluid, such as the drilling fluid in the holding tank. The open firstend 70 of the fluid port assembly 65 is operably connected to theexhaust member 30 of the exhaust assembly 20 such that as the lostcirculation material 12 flows past the first end 70 of the fluid portassembly 65, the fluid in proximity or contact with the open second end76 of the fluid port assembly 65 is drawn into the open second end 76 ofthe fluid port assembly 65 through the length 60 of the mister 44a andcombined with the lost circulation material 12 thereby reducing ambientor bound particles.

From the above description it is clear that the present invention iswell adapted to carry out the objects and obtain the advantagesmentioned herein as well as those inherent in the invention. Whilepreferred embodiments of the invention have been described for thepurposes of this disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changesmay be made which will readily suggest themselves to those skilled inthe art which accomplish within the spirit of the invention disclosedand as defined in the appended claims.

1. A method of transporting a quantity of lost circulation material,comprising the steps of: providing a pump means for pumping having anintake assembly, an exhaust assembly, and a pump assembly disposedbetween the intake assembly and the exhaust assembly; disposing theintake assembly in proximity to a quantity of lost circulation material;disposing the exhaust assembly of the pump means in proximity to apredetermined location where the lost circulation material is to betransported; and activating the pump means assembly such that thequantity of lost circulation material is drawn into the intake assemblyof the pump means and discharged out of the exhaust assembly of the pumpmeans thereby transporting the lost circulation material to thelocation.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:providing an exhaust member having a first end, a second end and alength extending between the first end and the second end of the exhaustmember, the first end of the exhaust member operably connected to theexhaust assembly of the pump means and the second end of the exhaustmember disposed in proximity to the predetermined, location where thequantity of lost circulation material is to be transported, such that,the quantity of lost circulation material is discharged out of theexhaust assembly into the first end of the exhaust member, through andalong the length of the exhaust member and discharged out of the secondend of the exhaust member thereby transporting the quantity of lostcirculation material to the predetermined location.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising the steps of: providing an intake memberhaving a first end, a second end and a length extending between thefirst end and the second end, the first end of the intake memberdisposed in proximity to the quantity of lost circulation material thesecond end of the intake member operably connected to the intakeassembly of the pump means, such that, the quantity of lost circulationmaterial is drawn into the first end of the intake member, through thelength of the intake member, out of the second end of the intake memberthrough the pump means and discharged out of the exhaust assemblythereby transporting the quantity of lost circulation material to thepredetermined location.
 4. A method of transporting a quantity of lostcirculation material, comprising the steps of: providing a pump meansfor pumping having an intake assembly and an exhaust assembly; providingan intake member having a first end, a second end and a length, with thesecond end of the intake member operably connected to the intakeassembly of the pump means; disposing a quantity of lost circulationmaterial in proximity to the first end of the intake member; providingan exhaust member having a first end, a second end and a length, thefirst end of the exhaust member operably connected to the exhaustassembly of the pump means and the second end of the exhaust memberdisposed in proximity to a predetermined location where the lostcirculation material is to be transported; and activating the pump meanssuch that the lost circulation material is drawn into the first end ofthe intake member, through the length of the intake member, out of thesecond end of the intake member, and along into the intake assembly ofthe pump means, through the pump means, into the first end of theexhaust member, through the length of the exhaust member and dischargedout of the second end of the exhaust member thereby transporting thelost circulation material to the predetermined location.
 5. The methodof claim 1 wherein the quantity of lost circulation material is aquantity of cotton seed hulls.
 6. The method of claim 2 wherein thequantity of lost circulation material is a quantity of cotton seedhulls.
 7. The method of claim 3 wherein the quantity of lost circulationmaterial is a quantity of cotton seed hulls.
 8. The method of claim 4wherein the quantity of lost circulation material is a quantity ofcotton seed hulls.
 9. The method of claim 4 wherein the quantity of lostcirculation material is selected from a group of quantities of lostcirculation materials the group consisting of: cedar fiber, paper,sawdust, cellophane, calcium carbonate, phenolic plastic andcombinations and derivations thereof.
 10. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising the steps of providing the quantity of lost circulationmaterial in a container and disposing the container in close proximityto the intake assembly of the pump means such that upon activation ofthe pump means, the quantity of lost circulation material is drawn fromthe container.
 11. The method of claim 2 further comprising the steps ofproviding the quantity lost circulation material in a container anddisposing the container in close proximity to the intake assembly of thepump means such that upon activation of the pump means, the quantity oflost circulation material is drawn from the container.
 12. The method ofclaim 3 further comprising the steps of providing the quantity lostcirculation material in a container and disposing the container in closeproximity to the first end of the intake member such that uponactivation of the pump means, the quantity of lost circulation materialis drawn out of the container into the first end of the intake member.13. The method of claim 4 further comprising the steps of providing thequantity lost circulation material in a container and disposing thecontainer in close proximity to the first end of the intake member suchthat upon activation of the pump means, the quantity of lost circulationmaterial is drawn from the container.
 14. The method of claim 5 furthercomprising the step of providing the quantity lost circulation materialin a container and disposing the container in close proximity to theintake assembly of the pump means such that upon activation of the pumpmeans, the quantity of lost circulation material is drawn from thecontainer.
 15. The method of claim 6 further comprising the step ofproviding the quantity lost circulation material in a container anddisposing the container in close proximity to the intake assembly of thepump means such that upon activation of the pump means, the quantity oflost circulation material is drawn from the container.
 16. The method ofclaim 7 further comprising the step of providing the quantity lostcirculation material in a container and disposing the container in closeproximity to the intake assembly of the pump means such that uponactivation of the pump means, the quantity of lost circulation materialis drawn from the container.
 17. The method of claim 8 furthercomprising the step of providing the quantity lost circulation materialin a container and disposing the container in close proximity to theintake assembly of the pump means such that upon activation of the pumpmeans, the quantity of lost circulation material is drawn from thecontainer.
 18. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step ofproviding an internal combustion engine and powering the pump means withthe internal combustion engine.
 19. The method of claim 4 furthercomprising the step of providing an electric motor and powering the pumpmeans with the electric motor.
 20. The method of claim 4 furthercomprising the step of discharging the lost circulation material fromthe second end of the exhaust member into a mud pit of a drillingsystem.
 21. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step ofdischarging the lost circulation material into the mud pit of ahydrocarbon drilling system.
 22. The method of claim 4 furthercomprising the step of discharging the lost circulation material fromthe second end of the exhaust member into a mixing hopper of a drillingsystem.
 23. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step ofdischarging the lost circulation material from the second end of theexhaust member into the mixing hopper of a hydrocarbon drilling system.24. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step of providing thequantity lost circulation material in a portable trailer and disposingthe portable trailer in close proximity to the first end of the intakemember such that upon activation of the pump means, the quantity of lostcirculation material is drawn from the portable trailer.
 25. The methodof claim 4 further comprising the step of providing the quantity lostcirculation material in a tractor trailer and disposing the tractortrailer in close proximity to the first end of the intake member suchthat upon activation of the pump means, the quantity of lost circulationmaterial is drawn from the tractor trailer.
 26. The method of claim 4further comprising the step of providing a mister in proximity to thesecond end of the exhaust member for reducing ambient airborne particlesof lost circulation material.
 27. The method of claim 14 furthercomprising the step of providing a mister in proximity to the second endof the exhaust member for reducing ambient airborne particles of lostcirculation material.
 28. The method of claim 14 wherein the step ofproviding the intake member the intake member is a flexible tubing. 29.The method of claim 4 wherein in the step of providing the intakemember, the intake member is a flexible tubing and in the step ofproviding the exhaust member, the exhaust member is a flexible tubing.